Patsy Collins | The View Outside

Yesterday was launch day for Patsy Collins. Her collection of 7 short stories, Not A Drop To Drink, has been published under the Smiling Dog imprint at Alfie Dog

Here’s the blurb.

Scientists say the human body is around 70% water. We know that’s not true.
Oh, we could drink ‘straight’ H20, but usually we don’t. More likely it’s vitamin rich juice or teeth rotting cola. We like a nice cup of tea to calm us down or cheer us up. Perhaps a nice glass of wine to celebrate or drown our sorrows. Two glasses. Too many glasses.
Our bodies do contain liquid of course. Never just water. What’s in yours; acid and bile or the milk of human kindness? Blood, sweat and tears of joy or sorrow?
It’s these waters you’ll find running through these stories.

I’m a huge fan of Patsy’s (*whispers* Not only is she a great writer but she’s a lovely lady too!), so I was thrilled to get the opportunity to ask her a few questions 🙂

1. What made you decide to release a book of short stories after having 2 successful novels?
It seemed like a good idea at the time! Actually ‘Not a Drop to Drink ‘ really did start as just a vague idea. I mentioned it to Rosemary at Alfie Dog Fiction and she offered to edit and publish the book under the Smiling Dog imprint to help promote my writing and the Alfie Dog website – where you can download around 600 truly excellent short stories by authors who write in a wide range of genres. My husband agreed to produce a cover so I didn’t have to do anything really, except email Rosemary a selection to pick from and agree with her excellent suggestions on layout etc.
2. What inspires you?
I often get idea when I’m carrying camera gear along the beach, climbing hills or working on my allotment, so probably it’s getting puffed out in the fresh air. Just in case I’m wrong and cake is my real inspiration, I eat loads of that.
3. How much time do you spend on research?
It depends. I tend to base stories in areas I know and give characters jobs I’ve done which helps quite a lot. I’ve worked in shops and offices, on a ship, as a waitress, on a farm and as a telephone operator, so I’ve already done a fair bit of research. When I do need to research anything new, I do it as thoroughly as possible. I’ve attended inquests, got lost on the underground and sang carols in order to write about these things.
4. Describe your average day?
If I’m working – drink tea, go to work, write in my lunch break, come home and check emails etc, submit to a magazine, cook dinner, drink wine, read, sleep. If away in the van – drink tea, climb a hill, photograph ships, visit a castle (or all three), write, cook dinner, drink wine, read, sleep.
5. What book are YOU currently reading?
I’ve almost finished Burning Bright by Tracy Chevalier and am really enjoying it.
6. Any advice for aspiring authors?
Write! Having a go is the best way to learn. Reading books of advice, attending classes and learning the rules are all a good idea, but you need to actually do the writing, not just know the theory.
7. How do people get hold of your book?
‘Not a Drop to Drink’ is available from the Alfie Dog website.

Thank you so much Patsy for stopping by today. Good luck with the new release, you know I’ll be downloading a copy don’t you! 🙂

Do check out Patsy’s other work. Escape to The Country and Paint Me a Picture both available on Kindle. I promise, you won’t be disappointed 🙂

Patsy is one of many Indie authors, who have decided to go down the Kindle route, and I wish her every success. My own thoughts on this are that if you’re a “good” writer, your work will shine, no matter how, or where its published. So please support our indie authors. It’s authors like Patsy who are paving the way for writers like me 🙂

And don’t forget to check out the Alfie Dog website (link above). Is it something YOU would consider?

Todays Blog Swap is with author, Patsy Collins, who’s blog can be found here

Patsy has recently published her first novel, Escape to the Country which, I’ve read, and thoroughly enjoyed 🙂

How did you know you wanted to be a writer?
I didn’t really. A creative writing class was something I started almost by accident. It wasn’t until the term ended I realised I was hooked and signed on again. That was ten years ago.

What genre do you write in?
I suppose it could be classed as ‘women’s fiction’. I write short stories for magazines and romantic novels. Mostly.

Do you have a writing schedule, your normal writing day?
I don’t have a schedule, but I try to do something writing related every day. I write more in the winter – then it’s most evenings after I get in from the day job. In summer the garden, allotment and campervan are big distractions.

What’s the best writing environment for you – where you write?
At home I have a nice office that I share with Gary (my beloved husband to be). This is my half (specially tidied up for the photo!) Two screens are handy for editing and research, so when Gary decided his wasn’t good enough for his photography, I snaffled it.

Although it’s nice to have the office and comfy leather chair these things don’t improve my writing. It has improved since I started with a biro and stack of paper in the gloomy dining room of my previous home, but that’s because I’ve practised and learned a lot since then, not because I no longer have to get a friend to print out my submissions after I’ve typed them up on the work computer. I’d like to say the availability of a computer and printer has speeded things up, but now I have the internet …

I also do quite a lot of writing in our campervan. There’s far less space there, but once I get into a story I don’t notice my surroundings much. I could, and would, write anywhere.

Who inspires you?
Gary, my family, friends, the author of any piece of writing I’ve enjoyed reading.

If you were to be compared to another author, who’s work would yours most resemble?
I don’t know! My novel writing style has been compared with Katie Fforde – do you think there are similarities? (Vikki – Definitely!)

Tell us about your current WIP/recently published book?
Escape to the Country was published earlier this year after I won a novel writing competition. It’s a romantic crime story, set mostly on a farm in Kent. There’s food, mud, herbal potions, intrigue, bovine midwifery and love.

I’ve had some great feedback as you can see from the Amazon customer reviews I’m doing a series of radio interviews and a book signing to help promote it. Details can be found here

I’ve just finished the edits of A Year and a Day. This is another light hearted romance and I’m currently writing a third. That sounds like I knock out a novel every couple of months – I don’t! I tend to write a draft, leave it and write something else, then edit, then write something else, so there are often several projects on the go at a time.

Dont forget to nip on over to Patsy’s Blog to see what i have to say today. I’ll be talking about my interest in other writers work spaces.

As I said, I’ve read Patsy’s novel and thought it was great….I reviewed it on Amazon. So my question today dear readers, is Do you review books you read on Amazon? I have to say, I don’t review big name authors, but I feel it’s important to support the new authors 🙂